System and method of scheduling an event related to an advertisement

ABSTRACT

A method of scheduling an event related to an advertisement includes transmitting media content to a set-top box. The media content includes an advertisement having a selectable reminder indicator related to the advertisement. The method further includes receiving an input selection related to the selectable reminder indicator and scheduling a reminder related to the advertisement for transmission to one or more selected devices based on the input selection.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure is generally related to systems and methods ofscheduling events related to advertisements.

BACKGROUND

Television broadcasts often include advertising segments that arerelated to upcoming events, including upcoming scheduled televisionprograms, retail sale events, community activities, and other types ofscheduled events. To schedule a recording of an upcoming program, forexample, a user typically leaves a currently viewed program to access anelectronic program guide (EPG), locates the upcoming program within theEPG, selects the upcoming program, and schedules the digital recording.Alternatively, a user has to remember at a later time to access the EPGto configure a digital video recorder (DVR) function to record or tuneto the program. Hence, there is a need for an improved system and methodof scheduling an event related to an advertisement.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of asystem to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a second particular illustrative embodimentof a system to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of third particular illustrative embodiment ofa system to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a fourth particular illustrative embodimentof a system to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 5 is a general diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of auser interface to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a second particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a third particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a fourth particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a fifth particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface to schedule an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of amethod of scheduling an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a second particular illustrative embodimentof a method of scheduling an event related to an advertisement;

FIG. 12 is a flow diagram of a third particular illustrative embodimentof a method of scheduling an event, such as a reminder, related to anadvertisement; and

FIG. 13 is a block diagram that is representative of a particularembodiment of a general computer system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In a particular illustrative embodiment, a method of scheduling an eventrelated to an advertisement is disclosed that includes transmittingmedia content to a set-top box. The media content may include anadvertisement having a selectable indicator related to a reminderfunction. The method further includes receiving an input selectionrelated to the selectable indicator and scheduling a reminder related tothe advertisement for transmission to one or more selected devices basedon the input selection.

In another particular illustrative embodiment, a method of scheduling anevent related to an advertisement is disclosed that includes receivingmedia content from a content source at a set-top box coupled to adisplay device. The media content includes an advertisement having oneor more selectable indicators related to the advertisement. The methodfurther includes providing the media content to the display device andreceiving an input selection related to a selected indicator of the oneor more selectable indicators.

In another particular illustrative embodiment, a system is provided thatincludes an input, a record module and a reminder module. The input isresponsive to a network to receive an input selection related to aselectable indicator embedded within an advertisement of a media stream.The record module schedules a record operation of a program associatedwith the advertisement when the input selection comprises a recordinput. The reminder module schedules transmission of a reminder relatedto the advertisement to a selected device when the input selectioncomprises a reminder input. In a particular illustrative embodiment, thereminder may be transmitted to a mobile phone, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a set-top box device, a computer, or any combinationthereof. Additionally, the reminder may be sent to an email address, aphone number, an instant message account, or any combination thereof toprovide a reminder of an upcoming event.

Referring to FIG. 1, an illustrative embodiment of an Internet ProtocolTelevision (IPTV) system that may be used to provide a set-top boxapplication is illustrated and is generally designated 100. As shown,the system 100 can include a client facing tier 102, an application tier104, an acquisition tier 106, and an operations and management tier 108.Each tier 102, 104, 106, 108 is coupled to a private network 110; to apublic network 112, such as the Internet; or to both the private network110 and the public network 112. For example, the client-facing tier 102can be coupled to the private network 110. Further, the application tier104 can be coupled to the private network 110 and to the public network112. The acquisition tier 106 can also be coupled to the private network110 and to the public network 112. Additionally, the operations andmanagement tier 108 can be coupled to the public network 112.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the various tiers 102, 104, 106, 108communicate with each other via the private network 110 and the publicnetwork 112. For instance, the client-facing tier 102 can communicatewith the application tier 104 and the acquisition tier 106 via theprivate network 110. The application tier 104 can communicate with theacquisition tier 106 via the private network 110. Further, theapplication tier 104 can communicate with the acquisition tier 106 andthe operations and management tier 108 via the public network 112.Moreover, the acquisition tier 106 can communicate with the operationsand management tier 108 via the public network 112. In a particularembodiment, elements of the application tier 104, including, but notlimited to, a client gateway 150, can communicate directly with theclient-facing tier 102.

The client-facing tier 102 can communicate with user equipment via anaccess network 166, such as an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV)access network. In an illustrative embodiment, customer premisesequipment (CPE) 114, 122 can be coupled to a local switch, router, orother device of the access network 166. The client-facing tier 102 cancommunicate with a first representative set-top box device 116 via thefirst CPE 114 and with a second representative set-top box device 124via the second CPE 122. In a particular embodiment, the firstrepresentative set-top box device 116 and the first CPE 114 can belocated at a first customer premise, and the second representativeset-top box device 124 and the second CPE 122 can be located at a secondcustomer premise. In another particular embodiment, the firstrepresentative set-top box device 116 and the second representativeset-top box device 124 can be located at a single customer premise, bothcoupled to one of the CPE 114, 122. The CPE 114, 122 can includerouters, local area network devices, modems, such as digital subscriberline (DSL) modems, any other suitable devices for facilitatingcommunication between a set-top box device and the access network 166,or any combination thereof.

In an exemplary embodiment, the client-facing tier 102 can be coupled tothe CPE 114, 122 via fiber optic cables. In another exemplaryembodiment, the CPE 114, 122 can be digital subscriber line (DSL) modemsthat are coupled to one or more network nodes via twisted pairs, and theclient-facing tier 102 can be coupled to the network nodes viafiber-optic cables. Each set-top box device 116, 124 can process datareceived via the access network 166, via an IPTV software platform, suchas Microsoft® TV IPTV Edition.

The first set-top box device 116 can be coupled to a first externaldisplay device, such as a first television monitor 118, and the secondset-top box device 124 can be coupled to a second external displaydevice, such as a second television monitor 126. Moreover, the firstset-top box device 116 can communicate with a first remote control 120,and the second set-top box device 124 can communicate with a secondremote control 128. The set-top box devices 116, 124 can include IPTVset-top box devices; video gaming devices or consoles that are adaptedto receive IPTV content; personal computers or other computing devicesthat are adapted to emulate set-top box device functionalities; anyother device adapted to receive IPTV content and transmit data to anIPTV system via an access network; or any combination thereof.

In an exemplary, non-limiting embodiment, each set-top box device 116,124 can receive data, video, or any combination thereof, from theclient-facing tier 102 via the access network 166 and render or displaythe data, video, or any combination thereof, at the display device 118,126 to which it is coupled. In an illustrative embodiment, the set-topbox devices 116, 124 can include tuners that receive and decodetelevision programming signals or packet streams for transmission to thedisplay devices 118, 126. Further, the set-top box devices 116, 124 caninclude a STB processor 170 and a STB memory device 172 that isaccessible to the STB processor 170. In one embodiment, a computerprogram, such as the STB computer program 174, can be embedded withinthe STB memory device 172.

In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier 102 can include aclient-facing tier (CFT) switch 130 that manages communication betweenthe client-facing tier 102 and the access network 166 and between theclient-facing tier 102 and the private network 110. As illustrated, theCFT switch 130 is coupled to one or more data servers, such as D-servers132, that store, format, encode, replicate, or otherwise manipulate orprepare video content for communication from the client-facing tier 102to the set-top box devices 116, 124. The CFT switch 130 can also becoupled to a terminal server 134 that provides terminal devices with aconnection point to the private network 110. In a particular embodiment,the CFT switch 130 can be coupled to a video-on-demand (VOD) server 136that stores or provides VOD content imported by the IPTV system 100.Further, the CFT switch 130 is coupled to one or more video servers 180that receive video content and transmit the content to the set-top boxes116, 124 via the access network 166.

In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier 102 cancommunicate with a large number of set-top boxes, such as therepresentative set-top boxes 116, 124 over a wide geographic area, suchas a metropolitan area, a viewing area, a statewide area, a regionalarea, a nationwide area or any other suitable geographic area, marketarea, or subscriber or customer group that can be supported bynetworking the client-facing tier 102 to numerous set-top box devices.In a particular embodiment, the CFT switch 130, or any portion thereof,can include a multicast router or switch that communicates with multipleset-top box devices via a multicast-enabled network.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the application tier 104 can communicate withboth the private network 110 and the public network 112. The applicationtier 104 can include a first application tier (APP) switch 138 and asecond APP switch 140. In a particular embodiment, the first APP switch138 can be coupled to the second APP switch 140. The first APP switch138 can be coupled to an application server 142 and to an OSS/BSSgateway 144. In a particular embodiment, the application server 142 canprovide applications to the set-top box devices 116, 124 via the accessnetwork 166, which enable the set-top box devices 116, 124 to providefunctions, such as interactive program guides, video gaming, display,messaging, processing of VOD material and other IPTV content, etc. In anillustrative embodiment, the application server 142 can provide locationinformation to the set-top box devices 116, 124. In a particularembodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 144 includes operation systems andsupport (OSS) data, as well as billing systems and support (BSS) data.In one embodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 144 can provide or restrictaccess to an OSS/BSS server 164 that stores operations and billingsystems data.

The second APP switch 140 can be coupled to a domain controller 146 thatprovides Internet access, for example, to users at their computers 168via the public network 112. For example, the domain controller 146 canprovide remote Internet access to IPTV account information, e-mail,personalized Internet services, or other online services via the publicnetwork 112. In addition, the second APP switch 140 can be coupled to asubscriber and system store 148 that includes account information, suchas account information that is associated with users who access the IPTVsystem 100 via the private network 110 or the public network 112. In anillustrative embodiment, the subscriber and system store 148 can storesubscriber or customer data and create subscriber or customer profilesthat are associated with IP addresses, stock-keeping unit (SKU) numbers,other identifiers, or any combination thereof, of corresponding set-topbox devices 116, 124. In another illustrative embodiment, the subscriberand system store can store data associated with capabilities of set-topbox devices associated with particular customers.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the application tier 104 mayalso include a reminder/record server 149 to schedule an event relatedto an advertisement. For example, the reminder/record server 149 mayschedule transmission of a reminder to one or more devices in responseto selection of a selectable indicator embedded within an advertisementof a media stream.

In a particular embodiment, the application tier 104 can include aclient gateway 150 that communicates data directly to the client-facingtier 102. In this embodiment, the client gateway 150 can be coupleddirectly to the CFT switch 130. The client gateway 150 can provide useraccess to the private network 110 and the tiers coupled thereto. In anillustrative embodiment, the set-top box devices 116, 124 can access theIPTV system 100 via the access network 166, using information receivedfrom the client gateway 150. User devices can access the client gateway150 via the access network 166, and the client gateway 150 can allowsuch devices to access the private network 110 once the devices areauthenticated or verified. Similarly, the client gateway 150 can preventunauthorized devices, such as hacker computers or stolen set-top boxdevices from accessing the private network 110, by denying access tothese devices beyond the access network 166.

For example, when the first representative set-top box device 116accesses the client-facing tier 102 via the access network 166, theclient gateway 150 can verify subscriber information by communicatingwith the subscriber and system store 148 via the private network 110.Further, the client gateway 150 can verify billing information andstatus by communicating with the OSS/BSS gateway 144 via the privatenetwork 110. In one embodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 144 can transmit aquery via the public network 112 to the OSS/BSS server 164. After theclient gateway 150 confirms subscriber and/or billing information, theclient gateway 150 can allow the set-top box device 116 to access IPTVcontent and VOD content at the client-facing tier 102. If the clientgateway 150 cannot verify subscriber information for the set-top boxdevice 116, e.g., because it is connected to an unauthorized twistedpair, the client gateway 150 can block transmissions to and from theset-top box device 116 beyond the access network 166.

As indicated in FIG. 1, the acquisition tier 106 includes an acquisitiontier (AQT) switch 152 that communicates with the private network 110.The AQT switch 152 can also communicate with the operations andmanagement tier 108 via the public network 112. In a particularembodiment, the AQT switch 152 can be coupled to a live acquisitionserver 154 that receives or acquires television content, movie content,advertisement content, other video content, or any combination thereof,from a broadcast service 156, such as a satellite acquisition system orsatellite head-end office. In a particular embodiment, the liveacquisition server 154 can transmit content to the AQT switch 152, andthe AQT switch 152 can transmit the content to the CFT switch 130 viathe private network 110.

In an illustrative embodiment, content can be transmitted to theD-servers 132, where it can be encoded, formatted, stored, replicated,or otherwise manipulated and prepared for communication from the videoserver(s) 180 to the set-top box devices 116, 124. The CFT switch 130can receive content from the video server(s) 180 and communicate thecontent to the CPE 114, 122 via the access network 166. The set-top boxdevices 116, 124 can receive the content via the CPE 114, 122, and cantransmit the content to the television monitors 118, 126. In anillustrative embodiment, video or audio portions of the content can bestreamed to the set-top box devices 116, 124.

Further, the AQT switch 152 can be coupled to a video-on-demand importerserver 158 that receives and stores television or movie content receivedat the acquisition tier 106 and communicates the stored content to theVOD server 136 at the client-facing tier 102 via the private network110. Additionally, at the acquisition tier 106, the video-on-demand(VOD) importer server 158 can receive content from one or more VODsources outside the IPTV system 100, such as movie studios andprogrammers of non-live content. The VOD importer server 158 cantransmit the VOD content to the AQT switch 152, and the AQT switch 152,in turn, can communicate the material to the CFT switch 130 via theprivate network 110. The VOD content can be stored at one or moreservers, such as the VOD server 136.

When users issue requests for VOD content via the set-top box devices116, 124, the requests can be transmitted over the access network 166 tothe VOD server 136, via the CFT switch 130. Upon receiving suchrequests, the VOD server 136 can retrieve the requested VOD content andtransmit the content to the set-top box devices 116,124 across theaccess network 166, via the CFT switch 130. The set-top box devices 116,124 can transmit the VOD content to the television monitors 118, 126. Inan illustrative embodiment, video or audio portions of VOD content canbe streamed to the set-top box devices 116, 124.

FIG. 1 further illustrates that the operations and management tier 108can include an operations and management tier (OMT) switch 160 thatconducts communication between the operations and management tier 108and the public network 112. In the embodiment illustrated by FIG. 1, theOMT switch 160 is coupled to a TV2 server 162. Additionally, the OMTswitch 160 can be coupled to an OSS/BSS server 164 and to a simplenetwork management protocol (SNMP) monitor server 186 that monitorsnetwork devices within or coupled to the IPTV system 100. In aparticular embodiment, the OMT switch 160 can communicate with the AQTswitch 152 via the public network 112.

In an illustrative embodiment, the live acquisition server 154 cantransmit content to the AQT switch 152, and the AQT switch 152, in turn,can transmit the content to the OMT switch 160 via the public network112. In this embodiment, the OMT switch 160 can transmit the content tothe TV2 server 162 for display to users accessing the user interface atthe TV2 server 162. For example, a user can access the TV2 server 162using a personal computer 168 coupled to the public network 112.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, a selectable indicator may beembedded within an advertisement by an advertising content source priorto acquisition of the advertisement. Alternatively, the video servers180 may insert targeted advertisements, including selectable indicators,into video content at appropriate locations. The video servers 180 cantransmit media content that includes an advertisement having aselectable indicator, such as a record indicator or a reminderindicator, to a set-top box device, such as the STB 124. The STB 124 mayreceive an input selection related to the selectable indicator and cansend data to the record/reminder server 149. The data may includeinstructions to schedule a reminder or a record operation related to theadvertisement. In a particular illustrative embodiment, therecord/reminder server 149 can generate reminders related to theadvertisement in one or more data formats and transmit the reminders toselected devices, such as the computer 168, a personal digital assistant(PDA) 176, a mobile telephone 178, the STB 124, or any combinationthereof.

For example, if the advertisement is related to an upcoming scheduledprogram, a reminder may be transmitted to one or more devices, such asthe computer 168, the PDA 176, the mobile phone 178 or the STB 124. Thereminder may include information related to the upcoming scheduledprogram, so that a user is reminded to tune the STB 124 to the upcomingscheduled program. Alternatively, the user may be reminded to access anelectronic program guide to schedule a digital video recorder functionto record the upcoming scheduled program.

In another particular illustrative embodiment, if the advertisement isrelated to an upcoming event, such as a community event, a sale event,or some other upcoming occasion, a reminder may be scheduled based on aninput selection, and the record/reminder server 149 may transmit areminder to one or more devices, such as the computer 168, the PDA 176,the mobile phone 178, the STB 124, or any combination thereof. Thereminder may include information related to the upcoming event, such asthe date, the time, and the location, so that the user is reminded ofthe event at some other time.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, a user may see an advertisementfor an “early bird” sale event at a particular retail establishment,where the advertisement includes a selectable reminder indicator. Theuser may select the selectable reminder indicator to schedule a reminderto be transmitted to one or more devices to remind the user (at a latertime) about the sale event. In a particular illustrative embodiment, theuser may specify selected devices, selected data formats, and times fortransmission of the reminder. For example, a user may access a remindermenu at the STB 124 to cause the record/reminder server 149 to transmita reminder as a pop-up to the set-top box 124 for display via thedisplay device 126 two hours prior to the sale event. A user may alsospecify transmission of the reminder to the mobile phone 178, to the PDA176, or to the computer 168 in selected formats, including instantmessages, text messages, email, or audio alerts. For example, the usermay configure the system 100 to send a second reminder of the sale eventto the mobile phone 178 as a text message or as an audio alert thirtyminutes prior to the sale event.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a second particular illustrative embodimentof a system 200 to schedule an event related to an advertisement. Thesystem 200 includes a central video head-end system 202, an email server204 with instant message functionality, a regional video distributionhead-end system 206, a user's cell phone 208, a user's computing device210 and a set-top box device 212 that are communicatively coupled via anetwork 214, which may be an Internet Protocol (IP) network. The set-topbox 212 may be coupled to a display device 216 and may be responsive toa remote control device 218 to receive user inputs. The central videohead-end system 202 may include a channel content server 220, a serviceprovider record/remind application server 222, content data 224, andschedule data 226.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the central video head-endsystem 202 is adapted to distribute media content to the set-top boxdevice 212 via the network 214. The media content may include anadvertisement with a selectable indicator. The set-top box device 212 isadapted to receive the media content including the advertisement withthe selectable indicator and to provide the media content to the displaydevice 216. The set-top box device 212 may receive an input selectionrelated to the selectable indicator and transmit the input selection tothe central video head-end system 202. The service providerrecord/remind application server 222 may schedule a record operation ora remind operation according to the input selection. When the scheduledoperation is a record operation, the service provider record/remindapplication server 222 may record media content associated with theparticular advertisement for later download to the set-top box 212.Alternatively, the service provider record/remind application server 222may transmit a control signal to the set-top box device 212 to access adigital video recorder (DVR) function at a desired time to trigger theset-top box 212 to record the media content associated with the inputselection.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, when the input selection is areminder selection, the service provider record/remind applicationserver 222 may generate a reminder in one or more formats fortransmission to one or more user devices. For example, the serviceprovider record/remind application server 222 may generate an audioalert (for example, by converting text to speech to produce the audioalert) and transmit the audio alert to the user's cell phone 208.Alternatively, the service provider record/remind application server 222may generate a pop up reminder for transmission to the set-top box 212for display at the display device 216. In another particularillustrative embodiment, the service provider record/remind applicationserver 222 may transmit a reminder via the email server 204 in an emailformat, a text message format or an instant message format to the user'scomputing device 210, the user's cell phone 208, or to anotherelectronic device, such as the PDA 176 in FIG. 1.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, an agreement may be madebetween a service provider and a content producer to run a promotionaladvertisement for an upcoming television program, for an upcomingcommunity event, for an upcoming sale event, or for another upcomingevent. The agreement may include the reminder and/or recordfunctionality. The service provider may configure the record/remindapplication server 222 with appropriate record and reminder options forthe promotional advertisement. For example, if the promotionaladvertisement is a commercial related to an upcoming television program,the advertisement may include selectable indicators for both the recordand the reminder options. In a particular illustrative embodiment, ifthe promotional advertisement is related to an event (such as a salesevent, a community activity, or some other event), the promotionaladvertisement may include a selectable indicator for the reminderoption, but not for the record option.

The service provider may establish an appropriate trigger within videocontent of the content data 224 to trigger a pop-up within the videocontent at an appropriate time while the promotional advertisement isbeing displayed at the display device 216. In a particular illustrativeembodiment, the trigger can be included in a Moving Pictures ExpertGroup-2 (MPEG2) transport stream that carries the media content, whichmay include Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) MPEG4 channel content.In a particular embodiment, the trigger can be a cue tone within theserial digital content sent by the central video head end system 202. Inanother particular embodiment, the trigger can be time-based (e.g.,triggered at a particular time). A pop up can be triggered at theset-top box 212 based on the embedded trigger within the promotionaladvertisement.

In a particular embodiment, the channel content server 220 can providethe promotional advertisement within media content transmitted to theset-top box device 212 via the network 214, which may be a backboneprivate or public Internet Protocol (IP) network. In an illustrativeembodiment, the media content may be transmitted to the regional videodistribution head-end system 206 and through a regional private network(not shown) or via the network 214 to the set-top box device 212. Themedia content may be provided to the display device 216 by the set-topbox device 212. In a particular embodiment, the linear channel contentmay be cached in a channel content cache server (not shown) within theregional video distribution head end system 206.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the channel content server 220sends a trigger to the service provider record/remind application server222 when a record and remind option should be provided to the set-topbox device 212 for display at the display device 216. The serviceprovider record/remind application server 222 may invoke an applicationwithin the set-top box device 212 to provide a pop up at the displaydevice 216 including the record or remind options, such as a selectablerecord indicator and a selectable reminder indicator. If the viewerwishes to record a program associated with the promotional advertisementor to receive a reminder of the program, the pop up includesinstructions to select a specific button on the remote control toinitiate (schedule) the recording or reminder.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, if the user selects theselectable record indicator, the user may be presented with therecording options on the display device 216. The recording options maybe retrieved from a memory of the set-top box 212 or may be transmittedto the set-top box 212 from the service provider record/remindapplication server 222. The user may select DVR options for theparticular promotional advertisement and initiate the scheduled recordevent. The selected DVR options may be transmitted to the record/remindapplication server 222. The service provider record/remind applicationserver 222 may communicate the selected DVR options to the set-top boxdevice 212 to trigger the recording at a specified time. Alternatively,the service provider record/remind application server 222 may configurea network DVR module (not shown) to provide the DVR function byrecording the program at the central video head-end system 202 or at theregional video distribution head-end system 206.

In another particular illustrative embodiment, if the user selects theselectable reminder indicator, the user may be presented with a remindermenu, including reminder options, at the display device 216. In aparticular illustrative embodiment, the reminder options may beretrieved from a memory of the set-top box device 212. In anotherparticular embodiment, the reminder options may be sent to the set-topbox device 212 from the service provider record/remind applicationserver 222. The user may select (configure) the reminder options toschedule transmission of one or more reminders associated with thepromotional advertisement. The reminder options may allow the user tospecify one or more devices, to identify desired a desired data formatfor each of the one or more devices, and to specify one or more remindertimes. For example, a user may wish to receive three reminders at aparticular device over a period of time, such as one hour before thescheduled event, 15 minutes before the scheduled event, and 5 minutesbefore the scheduled event. In another particular illustrativeembodiment, a user may wish to receive a first reminder at a firstdevice at a first time, a second reminder at a second device at a secondtime, and a third reminder at a third device at a third time. Forexample, the user may wish to receive a reminder two hours before anevent at a work email address, thirty minutes prior to an event as a popup reminder at a television via a set-top box device, and 10 minutesprior to an event as a text message (or an audio alert) at a mobiletelephone.

In a particular embodiment, the service provider record/remindapplication server 222 may store the reminder information in theschedule database 226. When the reminder options are configured for anemail reminder, the service provider record/remind application server222 may send the reminder to an email address associated with the userat the scheduled time via the email server 204. When the reminderoptions are configured for an instant message (IM) reminder, the serviceprovider record/remind application server 222 may send the reminder toan IM account of the user at the scheduled time. When the reminderoptions are configured for a pop up reminder, the service providerrecord/remind application server 222 may send a pop-up to the set-topbox 212 at the scheduled time. When the reminder options are configuredfor a mobile phone reminder, the service provider record/remindapplication server 222 may utilize a wireless access point (WAP) serverto send the reminder to a mobile phone, such as the mobile phone 208, atthe scheduled time.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of third particular illustrative embodiment ofa system 300 to schedule an event related to an advertisement. Thesystem 300 may include a content source 302, such as the central videohead-end system 202 in FIG. 2, and a set-top box device 304communicatively coupled to the content source 302 via a network 306. Theset-top box device 304 may include a processor 308, a memory 310, anetwork interface 312, a display interface 314, and a remote interface316. The set-top box 304 may also include a digital video recordermodule 318, a menu generator module 320, a scheduler module 322, and acommunication module 324. The set-top box 304 may be coupled to adisplay device 216 via the display interface 314 and may be adapted toreceive input selections from a remote control 218 via the remoteinterface 316.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the set-top box 304 may receivemedia content from the content source 302 via the network 306. The mediacontent may include an advertisement with a selectable indicator, suchas an image or an icon, that is related to the advertisement. The mediacontent may be decoded by the processor 308 and provided to the displaydevice 216 via the display interface 314. The set-top box 304 mayreceive an input selection related to the selectable indicator via theremote interface 316. For example, a user may select a button on theremote control that corresponds to the selectable indicator. Forexample, the selectable indicator may be square, a circle, a triangle,or another shape that corresponds to a button of the remote control 218.Alternatively, the selectable indicator may be color-coded to correspondto a color of a key of the remote control 218.

If the set-top box 304 receives an input selection related to theselectable indicator, the processor 308 may process the input selectionto identify an option menu associated with the input selection. Theset-top box 304 may either retrieve the identified option menu from thememory 310 or may cause the menu generator module to generate the optionmenu for display at the display device 216. The user may provide inputselections related to the option menu to configure a scheduled action.For example, the user may configure a record option menu or a reminderoption menu to schedule a recording related to the advertisement, toschedule a reminder related to the advertisement, or any combinationthereof. The input selections related to the option menu may beprocessed by the processor 308 to determine a required future action.The processor 308 may configure the scheduler module 322 according tothe input selections to record a program related to the advertisement,to initiate communication of a reminder to a user device via thecommunication module 324, or any combination thereof. In a particularembodiment, the communication module 324 may be adapted to do one ormore of the following: initiate a phone call reminder to a specifiedtelephone number, to transmit an email or text message reminder to aspecified device, to generate an instant message (IM) reminder to aspecified IM account, or to generate a pop up reminder for display atthe display device 216.

In another particular illustrative embodiment, scheduling of the recordand reminder functionality may be performed by the content source 302 orby an application server associated with the content source 302. In suchan instance, the input selections may be sent to the content source 302,and the content source 302 or an associated application server maytrigger the set-top box 304 to display a pop-up reminder or to activatethe DVR module 318 at a appropriate time based on the user's inputselections.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a fourth particular illustrative embodimentof a system 400 to schedule an event related to an advertisement. Thesystem 400 includes a content source 302 coupled to a set-top box device212 via a network 214. The set-top box device 212 may be coupled to adisplay device 216 and may be responsive to a remote control device 218to receive user input selections. The system 400 may include a channelcontent module 402, a subscriber and system store 404, reminder modules406, a record/remind application module 408, and an application switch410, such as the application switch 138 in FIG. 1. The record/remindapplication module 408 may include a record scheduling module 416 and areminder scheduling module 418. The reminder modules 406 may include anemail module 420, an instant message module 422, a pop up generatormodule 424, call module 426, a reminder generator 428, and atext-to-speech converter module 430. Additionally, the content source302 may include a menu generator module 432.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the channel content module 402is adapted to provide media content to the network 214 via theapplication switch 410. The media content may include an advertisementwith one or more selectable indicators. The media content may bereceived by the set-top box 212 via the network 214 and may be providedto the display device 216. A user may utilize the remote control device218 to provide an input selection related to the one or more selectableindicators of the advertisement to the set-top box 212. The set-top box212 may provide the input selection to the content source 302. If theinput selection is a record selection, the content source 302 mayschedule a record operation using the record scheduling module 416. In aparticular illustrative embodiment, the record scheduling module 416 mayrecord media content associated with the advertisement (such as when theadvertisement is a promotion for an upcoming episode of a televisionprogram) based on the input selection. In another particularillustrative embodiment, the record scheduling module 416 may provide arecord trigger to the set-top box device 212 to initiate recording by adigital video recorder (DVR) of the set-top box device 212 at the timeof a program associated with the advertisement.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, when the input selection is areminder selection, the content source 302 may access the subscriber andsystem store 404 to determine preferences associated with the user fortransmission of a reminder. The content source 302 may schedulereminders using the reminder scheduling module 418. The reminderscheduling module 418 may include logic to selectively activate one ormore of the reminder modules 406 to generate a reminder in a particularformat for transmission to a selected user communication device 414 viathe network 214.

For example, the user preferences of a particular user may specifyseveral devices and a device order for transmission of reminders. In aparticular embodiment, the user may specify a mobile phone to receive anaudio alert reminder, and the reminder scheduling module 418 mayactivate the reminder generator 428 to generate a reminder message,activate the text-to-speech converter module 430 to convert the remindermessage to an audio alert, and activate the call module to call theuser's mobile telephone to deliver the audio alert at a specified timeprior to the scheduled event. Subsequently, the reminder schedulingmodule may activate another module to transmit the reminder message inanother format, such as an email format (via the email module 420) or aninstant message format (via the instant message module 422) or togenerate a pop up for display at the display device 216 (via the pop upgenerator), to remind the user of the upcoming event.

The upcoming event may be related to a scheduled television program.Alternatively, the scheduled event may be related to a sale event, agrand opening event, a community event, or other types of events. In thecase of a television program, the content source 302 may provide both arecord selectable indicator and a reminder selectable indicator. In thecase of a community event, the content source 302 may provide thereminder selectable indicator, another indicator, or any combinationthereof.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the content source 302 mayreceive an input selection related to one of the one or more selectableindicators embedded within an advertisement within the media content.The content source 302 may activate the menu generator 432 to generatean option menu related to the input selection. The content source 302may provide the option menu to the set-top box 212 via the network 214for display on the display device 216. The set-top box 212 may receiveuser selections related to the option menu and may provide the userselections to the content source 302. Depending on the input selection,the content source 302 may provide the user selections to one of therecord scheduling module 416 and the reminder scheduling module 418 toschedule recordation, reminders, or any combination thereof, accordingto the user selections.

FIG. 5 is a general diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of auser interface 500 to schedule an event related to an advertisement. Theuser interface 500 may include a display window 502 includinginformation related to an upcoming program 504 and an associated pop upwindow 506 including selectable indicators, such as a selectable recordindicator 508 and a selectable reminder indicator 510. A remote control218 may be used to interact with the user interface 500 via smart keys,such as a reminder button 512, a record button 514, and a cancel button516.

While the selectable indicators 508 and 510 are being displayed on thedisplay device 216, a user may select the reminder button 512 to triggerthe selectable reminder indicator 510 to schedule a reminder associatedwith the upcoming program or may select the record button 514 to triggerthe selectable record indicator 508 schedule a recording for theupcoming program. In response to an input selection related to one ofthe selectable indicators 508 and 510, the set-top box 212 may displayan option menu to enable the user to configure the particular function.For example, the record menu may allow the user to configure a recurringor one time only record operation. The reminder menu may allow a user toconfigure reminder options, such as selected devices, selected formatsand associated times for transmitting reminders.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a second particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface 600 to schedule an event related to anadvertisement. The user interface 600 may be provided by a set-top boxsuch as the set-top box 212 in FIGS. 2 and 5, to allow a user toconfigure a record option upon receipt of an input selection related toa selectable record indicator. The user interface 600 may include arecord menu 602 including information about an upcoming show 604, suchas the name, date, time and channel information associated with theupcoming program. The record menu 602 may also include a briefdescription 606 of the show, and selectable indicators of recordingoptions, such as a “Record this show” indicator 608, a “Record this showeach week (recurring)” indicator 610, a “Record this show any time it isshown” indicator 612, and a “Do not record this show” indicator 614.Selection of one of these selectable indicators configures the system toperform the requested function.

It should be understood that the user interface 600 is shown forillustrative purposes only. Other configurable options may also beprovided in the record menu 602, depending on the specificimplementation. For example, in a system that allows for intelligentcontent searching, the record menu 602 may include options to allow auser to enter content search criteria and to record program segmentsrelated to particular subject matter.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a third particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface 700 to schedule an event related to anadvertisement. The user interface 700 may be provided by a set-top box,such as the set-top box 212 in FIGS. 2 and 5, to allow a user toconfigure a reminder option upon receipt of an input selection relatedto a reminder selectable indicator. In this instance, the reminder menuis related to an advertisement of an upcoming television program (e.g.,American Idol). The user interface 700 includes a reminder menu 702. Thereminder menu 702 includes information about the upcoming program 704,such as the name, date, time and channel information. The reminder menu702 may also include a brief description 706 of the program andselectable indicators of reminder options, such as a “Send me a reminderfor this show” indicator 708, a “Send me a reminder for this show eachweek (recurring)” indicator 710, a “Send me a reminder for this show anytime it is shown” indicator 712, and a “Do not send me a reminder forthis show” indicator 714. Selection of one of these selectableindicators configures the system to generate and transmit remindersrelated to the requested function.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a fourth particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface 800 to schedule an event related to anadvertisement. The user interface 800 includes a reminder set up menu802, which a user to configure a set-top box or a content source toselectively communicate a reminder to one or more devices, in one ormore selected device formats, and at selected reminder times. Forexample, the reminder set up menu 802 includes a pop up on displaycheckbox 804, a position pull down menu 806 associated with the display,and a time parameter pull down menu 808 associated with the pop up. Thereminder set up menu 802 also includes an email checkbox 810, an emailaddress text box 812, and a time parameter pull down menu 814 associatedwith the email option. The reminder set up menu 802 also includes aninstant message check box 816, an instant message address input 818, anda time parameter pull down menu 820 associated with the instant messageoption. Further, the reminder set up menu 802 may include a phone callcheckbox 822, a phone number input 824, and a time parameter pull downmenu 826 associated with the phone call option. Additionally, thereminder set up menu 802 may include an “other” checkbox 828, an othertext input 830, and a time parameter pull down menu 832 associated withthe other option 832. In a particular embodiment, a user may configurethe system to transmit two separate reminders at different times to thesame device by entering, for example, the same phone number in the othertext input 830 as the phone number entered in the phone number input 824

The reminder set up menu 802 may also include a set of inputs toconfigure a format of the reminder. For example, the pop up checkbox 804may be associated with a pop up format 834. The email checkbox 810 maybe associated with a format pull down menu 836 that allows a user toselect between various email formats, including text only format,hypertext markup language (HTML) format, pop3 format, an internetmessage access protocol (IMAP) format, an audio alert format, otherformats, or any combination thereof. As shown, the email format pulldown menu 836 is configured for an IMAP format, which may allow thesystem to send an email reminder in the form of a calendar schedulerequest to the user's email account, which the user may accept toautomatically update an associated calendar application. The instantmessage checkbox 816 may be associated with a format pull-down menu 838,which is configured for text format. The phone call checkbox 822 may beassociated with a format pull down menu 840, which is configured fortext format. The other check box 828 may be associated with a formatpull-down menu 842, which is configured for an audio alert. In aparticular embodiment, the audio alert format may be an audible alertthat is generated, for example, using a text-to-speech converter. Thereminder set up menu 802 may allow a user to configure reminders toselected devices in different formats and at different times.

For example, if the pop up on display option is selected for a lowerleft corner at a time that is 15 minutes prior to the beginning of theshow, a pop up reminder may be transmitted to the set-top box fordisplay in the lower left corner of the display device 15 minutes beforethe show. If the email message checkbox 810 is selected, an email may besent to the specified address at a specified time (e.g., an email may besent to xxxx@ATT.com approximately 1 hour before the show). The reminderset up menu 802 allows the user to configure multiple reminders tomultiple devices at different times. In the reminder set up menu 802,four separate devices are scheduled for reminders, and three of the fourdevices are scheduled to receive reminders at different times and infour different formats.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a fifth particular illustrative embodimentof a user interface 900 to schedule an event related to anadvertisement. In the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 5-7, thescheduled event was related to a television program. However, aselectable reminder indicator may be embedded within any advertisementfor an upcoming promotion, allowing a user to configure the system toprovide a reminder of the upcoming event, whether it is a retail saleevent at a local retail establishment or a community event, such as aparade, a festival, or other community event, or some other scheduledevent. Additionally, the selectable reminder indicator may be providedwithin a public service announcement, such as an advertisement remindingpeople to vote. In a particular illustrative embodiment, an advertisingcontent source may include meta-data associated with the selectableindicator to provide reminder information for display via the userinterface 900, including an event duration, title, description, locationinformation, and other data.

The user interface 900 includes a reminder menu 902 that includesinformation related to an advertised event 904, such as a “One Day Only”sale by a retailer, such as Kohl's, as well as the date and time rangeof the event. The advertiser may also provide an associated descriptionof the event 906. The reminder menu 902 may include selectableindicators of reminder options, such as a “Send me a reminder for thisevent” indicator 908, a “Send me a reminder any time this advertiserpromotes an event” indicator 910, and a “Do not send me a reminder forthis event” indicator 912. A user may select a reminder option toconfigure the system to transmit a reminder associated with theadvertised event to one or more of the user's selected devices, such asthe devices shown in the set up menu 802 illustrated in FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of amethod of scheduling an event related to an advertisement. The methodincludes receiving media content from a content source at a set-top boxcoupled to a display device, where the media content includes anadvertisement having one or more selectable indicators, at 1000. Theset-top box provides the media content to the display device, at 1002.An input selection related to a selected indicator of the one or moreselectable indicators is received at the set-top box, at 1004. Theset-top box determines if the input selection is a record input, areminder input, or a cancel input, at 1006. If the input selection is acancel input at 1008, the method terminates, at 1010. Returning to 1008,if the input selection is a record input, a record menu is provided tothe display device, at 1012. In a particular illustrative embodiment,the record option menu includes options to configure a digital videorecorder function to record a program related to the advertisement. Theset-top box receives a user input related to the record menu, at 1014.The user input is transmitted to the content source to schedule anetwork action related to the user input, at 1016. The methodterminates, at 1010.

Returning to 1008, if the input selection is a remind input, a remindermenu is provided to the display device by the set-top box, at 1018. In aparticular illustrative embodiment, the reminder option menu includesoptions to configure a reminder function to schedule transmission of oneor more reminders to one or more selected devices. The set-top boxreceives a user input related to the reminder menu, at 1020. The userinput is transmitted to the content source to schedule a network actionrelated to the user input, at 1016. The method terminates, at 1010.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the one or more selectableindicators include a record indicator and a reminder indicator. In aparticular embodiment, the method may include scheduling a firstreminder to a first device of the one or more selected devices in afirst format for transmission at a first time and scheduling a secondreminder to a second device of the one or more selected devices in asecond format for transmission at a second time. In another particularillustrative embodiment, the method may include scheduling bothrecording at the set-top box device and one or more reminders to be sentto one or more devices of the one or more selected devices.

In another particular illustrative embodiment, the option menu may bereceived from the content source. In still another particularillustrative embodiment, a processor of the set-top box may identify afunction related to the input selection, and the option menu may beretrieved from a memory of the set-top box based on the identifiedfunction.

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a second particular illustrative embodimentof a method of scheduling an event related to an advertisement. Themethod includes transmitting media content to a set-top box coupled to adisplay device, where the media content includes an advertisement havinga selectable indicator related to a reminder function, at 1100. Thecontent source receives a first input selection related to theselectable indicator, at 1102. The content source determines whether thefirst input selection is a reminder selection, at 1104. If the firstinput selection is a reminder selection at 1106, a reminder menu isgenerated that includes reminder options, at 1108. The generated menu istransmitted to the set-top box, at 1110. Returning to 1106, if the inputselection is not a reminder selection, a record menu is generated thatincludes recording options, at 1112, and the generated menu istransmitted to the set-top box at 1110.

A second input selection related to the generated menu is received fromthe set-top box, at 1114. An action related to the second inputselection is scheduled, at 1116. The method terminates, at 1118.

In a particular embodiment, a reminder is scheduled for transmission toone or more selected devices based on the input selection, where thereminder is related to the advertisement. In a particular illustrativeembodiment, the content source is adapted to determine one or moredevices to which to transmit the reminder. The content source maydetermine the one or more devices according to a user preference. Inanother particular embodiment, the content source may identify a dataformat associated with each of the one or more selected devices. Thecontent source may generate a reminder in a first format that is relatedto a first device of the one or more selected devices and may transmitthe reminder to the first device in the first format. The content sourcemay generate the reminder in a second format that is related to a seconddevice of the one or more selected devices and may transmit the reminderto the second device in the second format. The reminders may be sent todifferent devices at the same time or at different times. Additionally,the reminder may be sent to a particular device more than once atdifferent times.

In a particular illustrative embodiment, the advertisement may include acommercial related to an upcoming scheduled television program, anupcoming community event, or an upcoming sale event. A reminder menu maybe provided by the content source to the set-top box to configure theone or more selected devices and to configure associated reminderoptions. The method may include transmitting the reminder to at leastone of the one or more selected devices in a data format, such as anemail message, a text message, an audio announcement, a pop-up visualindicator, or any combination thereof. In a particular illustrativeembodiment, the one or more selectable devices may include a mobilephone, a portable digital assistant (PDA), a personal computer, aset-top box, or any combination thereof.

FIG. 12 is a flow diagram of a particular illustrative embodiment of amethod of transmitting a reminder to a user in a selected format. Areminder input selection including reminder options is received from aset-top box, at 1200. A reminder schedule including reminder times isdetermined according to the reminder input selection, at 1202. One ormore reminders are scheduled according to the reminder schedule, at1204. A reminder format is selected according to the reminder inputselection, at 1206. A reminder is generated in the selected format, at1208. The reminder is transmitted to a user device associated with theselected format, at 1210. The method terminates, at 1212.

Referring to FIG. 13, an illustrative embodiment of a general computersystem is shown and is designated 1300. The computer system 1300 caninclude a set of instructions that can be executed to cause the computersystem 1300 to perform any one or more of the methods or computer basedfunctions disclosed herein. The computer system 1300, or any portionthereof, may operate as a standalone device or may be connected, e.g.,using a network, to other computer systems or peripheral devices,including a server or set-top box device, as shown in FIGS. 1-2.

In a networked deployment, the computer system may operate in thecapacity of an IPTV server, such as a video server or applicationserver, or in the capacity of a set-top box device. The computer system1300 can also be implemented as or incorporated into various devices,such as a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), apersonal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile device, a palmtop computer, alaptop computer, a desktop computer, a communications device, a wirelesstelephone, a land-line telephone, a control system, a camera, a scanner,a facsimile machine, a printer, a pager, a personal trusted device, aweb appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any other machinecapable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise)that specify actions to be taken by that machine. In a particularembodiment, the computer system 1300 can be implemented using electronicdevices that provide voice, video or data communication. Further, whilea single computer system 1300 is illustrated, the term “system” shallalso be taken to include any collection of systems or sub-systems thatindividually or jointly execute a set, or multiple sets, of instructionsto perform one or more computer functions.

As illustrated in FIG. 13, the computer system 1300 may include aprocessor 1302, e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), agraphics-processing unit (GPU), or both. Moreover, the computer system1300 can include a main memory 1304 and a static memory 1306 that cancommunicate with each other via a bus 1308. As shown, the computersystem 1300 may further include a video display unit 1310, such as aliquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED), aflat panel display, a solid state display, or a cathode ray tube (CRT).Additionally, the computer system 1300 may include an input device 1312,such as a keyboard, and a cursor control device 1314, such as a mouse.The computer system 1300 can also include a disk drive unit 1316, asignal generation device 1318, such as a speaker or remote control, anda network interface device 1320.

In a particular embodiment, as depicted in FIG. 13, the disk drive unit1316 may include a computer-readable medium 1322 in which one or moresets of instructions 1324, e.g. software, can be embedded. Further, theinstructions 1324 may embody one or more of the methods or logic asdescribed herein. In a particular embodiment, the instructions 1324 mayreside completely, or at least partially, within the main memory 1304,the static memory 1306, and/or within the processor 1302 duringexecution by the computer system 1300. The main memory 1304 and theprocessor 1302 also may include computer-readable media.

In an alternative embodiment, dedicated hardware implementations, suchas application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arraysand other hardware devices, can be constructed to implement one or moreof the methods described herein. Applications that may include theapparatus and systems of various embodiments can broadly include avariety of electronic and computer systems. One or more embodimentsdescribed herein may implement functions using two or more specificinterconnected hardware modules or devices with related control and datasignals that can be communicated between and through the modules, or asportions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Accordingly, thepresent system encompasses software, firmware, and hardwareimplementations.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, themethods described herein may be implemented by software programsexecutable by a computer system. Further, in an exemplary, non-limitedembodiment, implementations can include distributed processing,component/object distributed processing, and parallel processing.Alternatively, virtual computer system processing can be constructed toimplement one or more of the methods or functionality as describedherein.

The present disclosure contemplates a computer-readable medium thatincludes instructions 1324 or receives and executes instructions 1324responsive to a propagated signal, so that a device connected to anetwork 1326 can communicate voice, video or data over the network 1326.Further, the instructions 1324 may be transmitted or received over thenetwork 1326 via the network interface device 1320.

While the computer-readable medium is shown to be a single medium, theterm “computer-readable medium” includes a single medium or multiplemedia, such as a centralized or distributed database, and/or associatedcaches and servers that store one or more sets of instructions. The term“computer-readable medium” shall also include any medium that is capableof storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution bya processor or that cause a computer system to perform any one or moreof the methods or operations disclosed herein.

In a particular non-limiting, exemplary embodiment, thecomputer-readable medium can include a solid-state memory such as amemory card or other package that houses one or more non-volatileread-only memories. Further, the computer-readable medium can be arandom access memory or other volatile re-writable memory. Additionally,the computer-readable medium can include a magneto-optical or opticalmedium, such as a disk or tapes or other storage device to capturecarrier wave signals such as a signal communicated over a transmissionmedium. A digital file attachment to an e-mail or other self-containedinformation archive or set of archives may be considered a distributionmedium that is equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, thedisclosure is considered to include any one or more of acomputer-readable medium or a distribution medium and other equivalentsand successor media, in which data or instructions may be stored.

In accordance with various embodiments, the methods described herein maybe implemented as one or more software programs running on a computerprocessor. Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limitedto, application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arraysand other hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement themethods described herein. Furthermore, alternative softwareimplementations including, but not limited to, distributed processing orcomponent/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtualmachine processing can also be constructed to implement the methodsdescribed herein.

It should also be noted that software that implements the disclosedmethods may optionally be stored on a tangible storage medium, such as:a magnetic medium, such as a disk or tape; a magneto-optical or opticalmedium, such as a disk; or a solid state medium, such as a memory cardor other package that houses one or more read-only (non-volatile)memories, random access memories, or other re-writable (volatile)memories. The software may also utilize a signal containing computerinstructions. A digital file attachment to e-mail or otherself-contained information archive or set of archives is considered adistribution medium equivalent to a tangible storage medium.Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include a tangible storagemedium or distribution medium as listed herein, and other equivalentsand successor media, in which the software implementations herein may bestored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsthat may be implemented in particular embodiments with reference toparticular standards and protocols, the invention is not limited to suchstandards and protocols. For example, standards for Internet and otherpacket switched network transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP)represent examples of the state of the art. Such standards areperiodically superseded by faster or more efficient equivalents havingessentially the same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards andprotocols having the same or similar functions as those disclosed hereinare considered equivalents thereof.

The illustrations of the embodiments described herein are intended toprovide a general understanding of the structure of the variousembodiments. The illustrations are not intended to serve as a completedescription of all of the elements and features of apparatus and systemsthat utilize the structures or methods described herein. Many otherembodiments may be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewingthe disclosure. Other embodiments may be utilized and derived from thedisclosure, such that structural and logical substitutions and changesmay be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure.Additionally, the illustrations are merely representational and may notbe drawn to scale. Certain proportions within the illustrations may beexaggerated, while other proportions may be reduced. Accordingly, thedisclosure and the figures are to be regarded as illustrative ratherthan restrictive.

One or more embodiments of the disclosure may be referred to herein,individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merely forconvenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of thisapplication to any particular invention or inventive concept. Moreover,although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it should be appreciated that any subsequent arrangementdesigned to achieve the same or similar purpose may be substituted forthe specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover anyand all subsequent adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in theart upon reviewing the description.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R.§1.72(b) and is submitted with the understanding that it will not beused to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. Inaddition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, various features may begrouped together or described in a single embodiment for the purpose ofstreamlining the disclosure. This disclosure is not to be interpreted asreflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require morefeatures than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as thefollowing claims reflect, inventive subject matter may be directed toless than all of the features of any of the disclosed embodiments. Thus,the following claims are incorporated into the Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as defining separately claimedsubject matter.

The above-disclosed subject matter is to be considered illustrative, andnot restrictive, and the appended claims are intended to cover all suchmodifications, enhancements, and other embodiments, which fall withinthe true spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, to the maximumextent allowed by law, the scope of the present invention is to bedetermined by the broadest permissible interpretation of the followingclaims and their equivalents, and shall not be restricted or limited bythe foregoing detailed description.

1. A method, comprising: transmitting media content to a set-top box(STB), the media content including an advertisement, the advertisementcomprising a pop-up triggered by a transmitter of the media content andincluding a selectable reminder indicator related to an event; receivingan input selection related to the selectable reminder indicator from theSTB to set a reminder for the event; sending a first menu to the STB,the first menu including: a first option to schedule a first reminderfor the event; when the event is a recurring event, a second option toschedule a second reminder, wherein the second reminder is a recurringreminder; and when the event is promoted by an advertiser, a thirdoption to schedule a notification related to the advertiser, wherein thenotification is sent when the advertiser promotes another event; andsending a second menu to the STB when a selection of at least one of thefirst option, the second option, and the third option is received,wherein the second menu includes a device menu to select a plurality ofdevices associated with a user to receive a notice, to select one ormore times to receive the notice, to select a data format associatedwith each of the plurality of devices, and to specify a device order tosend the notice to the plurality of devices, wherein the notice is atleast one of the first reminder, the second reminder, and thenotification.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving asecond input selection related to the selectable reminder indicator fromthe STB to record the event when the event is a television program;recording the television program at a network digital video recorder;and downloading the recorded television program to the STB.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the advertisement comprises a commercialrelated to an upcoming scheduled television program and wherein theselectable reminder indicator includes an option to record the upcomingscheduled television program.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein theadvertisement comprises a commercial related to an upcoming communityevent and wherein at least one of the first reminder and the secondreminder includes a location of the upcoming community event.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the advertisement comprises a commercialrelated to an upcoming sale event.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving a second input selection related to the selectablereminder indicator from the STB to record the event when the event is atelevision program; and sending a second menu to the STB including afourth option to record the television program and a fifth option torecord the television program on a recurring basis when the televisionprogram is a recurring television program.
 7. The method of claim 6,wherein the second menu includes a sixth option to record the televisionprogram each time the television program is shown.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the data format is selected from a group consisting ofan email message, a text message, an audio announcement, and a pop-upvisual indicator.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:receiving from the STB a selection of the plurality of devices, wherein,when the selection of the plurality of devices includes selection of aphone, the method further comprises: converting the notice into speech;calling the phone; and providing the speech to the phone.
 10. The methodof claim 1, wherein at least one device of the plurality of devices is aportable digital assistant (PDA).
 11. The method claim 1, wherein atleast one device of the plurality of devices is a personal computer. 12.The method of claim 1, wherein the selectable reminder indicator doesnot include a record option when the event is an upcoming sale event.13. The method of claim 1, wherein the pop-up is embedded in theadvertisement by an advertising content source prior to acquisition ofthe advertisement by the transmitter of the media content.
 14. A method,comprising: receiving media content from a content source at a set-topbox coupled to a display device, the media content including anadvertisement comprising a pop-up triggered by a transmitter of themedia content and including one or more selectable indicators related toa first event; providing the media content to the display device;providing a device menu to enable selection of a plurality ofcommunication devices associated with a user to receive a notificationassociated with a second event, to enable selection of a correspondingdata format associated with each of the plurality of communicationdevices, and to specify a device order of the plurality of communicationdevices, wherein the notification is sent to the plurality ofcommunication devices in the selected data format based on the deviceorder; and receiving an input selection related to the one or moreselectable indicators to designate a first time to send the notificationto a first communication device of the plurality of communicationdevices, wherein the second event comprises another event that ispromoted by an advertiser associated with the first event.
 15. Themethod of claim 14, further comprising providing an option menu to thedisplay device in response to receiving a second input selection toschedule a future action.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the optionmenu comprises a reminder option menu when a second input selectioncomprises a reminder indicator selection.
 17. The method of claim 15,wherein providing the option menu comprises: transmitting the secondinput selection to the content source; receiving the option menu fromthe content source; and providing the option menu to the display device.18. The method of claim 15, wherein providing the option menu comprises:identifying a function related to the second input selection; retrievingthe option menu related to the identified function from a memory of theset-top box; and providing the option menu to the display device. 19.The method of claim 14, wherein the media content includes a cue tone totrigger display of the one or more selectable indicators related to thefirst event.
 20. The method of claim 14, wherein display of the one ormore selectable indicators is triggered at a particular time after theadvertisement is provided to the display device.
 21. The method of claim14, further comprising receiving a second input selection related to theone or more selectable indicators to designate a second time to send areminder of the first event to a second communication device designatedby the user.
 22. A system, comprising: a processor; a memory coupled tothe processor; and an input coupled to the processor and to the memory,the input responsive to a network to receive an input selection relatedto a selectable indicator embedded within an advertisement of an eventin a media stream; wherein the memory includes: a record module toschedule a record operation of a program associated with theadvertisement via a network digital video recorder at a head-end systemwhen the input selection comprises a record input; a device module toenable selection of a plurality of communication devices associated witha user to receive a reminder associated with the event, to enableselection of a corresponding data format associated with each of theplurality of communication devices, and to specify a device order of theplurality of communication devices, wherein the reminder is sent to theplurality of communication devices in the selected data format based onthe device order; and a reminder module to schedule transmission of thereminder to a first communication device of the plurality ofcommunication devices at one or more selected times when the inputselection comprises a reminder input, wherein the first communicationdevice comprises one of a computer, a personal data assistant (PDA), anda mobile phone.
 23. The system of claim 22, further comprising atext-to-speech converter module to generate an audio reminder fortransmission to the first communication device.
 24. The system of claim22, further comprising a reminder generator to generate the reminder inone or more formats for transmission to the first communication deviceand to at least one other communication device.
 25. The system of claim22, wherein the advertisement comprises a commercial related to anupcoming event, and wherein the reminder is related to the upcomingevent.
 26. The system of claim 22, wherein the reminder module isadapted to determine the corresponding data format that is associatedwith the first communication device and with at least one secondcommunication device to which the reminder is to be sent.
 27. The systemof claim 22, further comprising a search engine, wherein results fromthe search engine enable the record module to record segments of theprogram that are related to particular subject matter.
 28. The system ofclaim 22, further comprising a server to download the program associatedwith the advertisement recorded by the network digital video recorder toa set top box that provided the input selection.
 29. A non-transitoryprocessor readable storage medium embodying processor readableinstructions, the instructions operable to cause a processor to:transmit media content to a set-top box, the media content including anadvertisement having a selectable reminder indicator related to anevent; receive an input selection related to the selectable reminderindicator; receive first data identifying a plurality of devices;receive second data associating a data format with each of the pluralityof devices; receive a device order for transmitting to the plurality ofdevices; and schedule a first reminder related to the event fortransmission to a first device of the plurality of devices at a firsttime based on the input selection and to schedule a second reminderrelated to the event for transmission to a second device of theplurality of devices at a second time based on the input selection,wherein the first time is different than the second time, and whereinthe event comprises one or more of a sale event and a community event.30. The non-transitory processor readable storage medium of claim 29,further comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor,cause the processor to generate the first reminder in a first particulardata format for transmission to the first device and to generate thesecond reminder in a second particular data format for transmission tothe second device.
 31. The non-transitory processor readable storagemedium of claim 30, wherein the selectable reminder indicator includesan option to set a weekly recurring reminder when the event comprises arecurring event.